Quote:
Originally Posted by RustyLugNut
There is resistance to alternative fuels especially straight vegetable oil as fuel, but biodiesel is a proven pathway especially if the stock is a waste stream. The only real attack against the "Green nature" of biodiesel has been the need to use methanol which derives from natural gas in most areas. Some areas have ample supply of waste wood derived methanol so it is less of an issue. Methanol from bio-gas is also a possibility if the will is there.
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Either straight or waste vegetable oils are more suitable to indirect-injection engines, and the mileage may even get higher than with regular petroleum-based Diesel fuel since its slower burn is more suitable to the two-stage combustion process in an IDI. But since they're now confined to some markets with a lower car sales volume and fewer emission restrictions, it's now quite underestimated in the developed markets.
Regarding methanol, it can also be "accidentally" brewed in the same process that was used to make that "moonshine" booze. At least in my country, it's still not uncommon for inmates to get intoxicated by some residual methanol content in a similar alcoholic beverage brewed in the prisons.